Q&A with Ballin' is a Habit
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 6:20 PM EST
in Kentucky Wildcats Basketball
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PrintThe other day, I did a Q&A with Ballin' is a Habit, an excellent basketball blog, which has gone unlinked due to the demands of the holidays, basketball games and the Music City Bowl. I intend to rectify that situation right now.
In this Q&A, we cover all kinds of topics from the meaning of UK2K, the national perception of John Calipari, and which freshman player is having the greatest impact on the team so far (that answer may surprise many of you!).
So take a few minutes and read the whole thing. And while you're at it, check out some of the other excellent content there.
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Nice article...
How many times are you gonna have to answer, “Is Cal a cheater”?? LOL As you say, embrace the hate…
If your wings don't sweep....
but you know Tru answers the question so well....lol
I always like the Q & A features.
Blue... there is no other color to Bleed !!!
I absolutely cannot agree
with the statement that " John Wall is absolutely not good at defense at all yet" or words to that effect. While Wall has much room for defensive improvement, that is clearly an overstatement. He has made extremely important steals and blocked shots. Again, there is much room for improvement but not good at all is a bit extreme.
Wall strikes me as a guy who has great anticipation and is really good at jumping passing lanes, but he isn’t a great fundamental defender. He can be beat off the dribble.
by Ballinisahabit on Dec 28, 2009 9:26 PM EST up reply actions
Exactly right.
His physical skills are there, and they hide the fact that he has not once committed to defend all year. All you have to do is look at his personal fouls to figure that out.
Great defenders pick up a few fouls, and adjust. Wall almost never picks up more than two in an entire game. He only defends enough to keep the coach off his back right now, but sooner or later, that bar will get moved higher and higher.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:11 PM EST up reply actions
i agree with kywineman that your criticism was too strong...
you said
he still can’t defend a decent high-school player.
john wall is #21 in the NATION in steals per game thru 12/20 and #1 in the SEC – you do not lead the SEC in steals by not knowing how to play defense. also, he is getting those steals by NOT fouling – i agree his off ball defense needs some work and as quick as he is NO ONE should beat him off the dribble so he needs to work on moving his feet more. Room for improvement – sure – But can’t defend a decent HSer???
I hate to pile on but the fact that he is #3 in the NATION in assists per game is clear to me that he wants to involve his team (as opposed to your past criticism of his selfishness). if anyone should be branded as selfish it is cousins – his kick out to miller in the LBS game was one of a few kicks outs this season.
Sorry Tru – not sure what got into me tonight, but just ended up on the other side of you tonight :) (see bledsoe comment below as well)
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 10:44 PM EST up reply actions
He really can't.
I have watched him very closely. Wall does not commit to defense, and a good high-school player could beat him off the dribble and to a spot on the floor.
That should be impossible for a guy as quick and fast as Wall, which tells me one thing — he does not yet take pride in his defense. Calipari will change that, I have no doubt.
Just watch him next time. I re-watched an entire game, the game vs. Austin Peay, and paid attention to nothing but Wall’s defense. If you don’t believe me, watch it yourself.
Steals, especially by guards, is not an indicator of good defense. If you look at Wall’s steals, most of them come by jumping into passing lanes. That is good and takes little skill, but real defense is played in the half-court. Jumping into passing lanes is a risk, because if you don’t get the steal, your man gets an open jumpshot.
Remember back to Rondo? He got a ton of steals in his freshman year, but he was not a good defender anywhere but in transition.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:54 PM EST up reply actions
ouch -
got me on the Rondo point….
I am afraid wall relies on athletic ability too much.
Austin Peay? that was a long time ago… Seriously, i will concede that Wall would be scary good if he “committed” to D and not just go thru the motions.
Will look at some tivo’s games again…
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 10:57 PM EST up reply actions
This ...
I am afraid wall relies on athletic ability too much.
… is exactly correct. Exactly.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:59 PM EST up reply actions
on the foul comment...
there is an old adage in trading stocks that if you don’t have a few losers, then you aren’t trading enough – you just have to cut your losses on your losers and adjust. so i believe you are on to something.
However, that begs several questions – PP has only 17 fouls in 13 games – wall has 23 in 12 – does that make PP a bad defender? maybe we are comparing apples to oranges with a wing to a point player. Also, cuz has 45 and orton 32 fouls thru 13 games – does that make them better than PP? and just to be anal – Miller and bledsoe each have 27 fouls. what is the correct number?
man, i sound short tonight – guess i need a drink….
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 10:52 PM EST up reply actions
No, but keep in mind ...
… Patterson is used to defending in the post. That’s a different animal than defending a perimeter player. You have a much smaller area to defend, and it’s a lot more crowded and you aren’t getting picked off all the time.
Patterson doesn’t get many fouls because he positions himself well and moves his feet. Wall, on the other hand, does neither particularly well, so he avoids fouls by avoiding contact. You can’t avoid contact and play good defense.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:58 PM EST up reply actions
Michael Jordan, generally considered a good defender...
Great defenders pick up a few fouls, and adjust.
Playing in 1072 games, Michael Jordan only fouled out of 10 of them.
No matter where you're at, there you are
John Wall ...
… absolutely is not good at defense yet. Steals are not defense, especially considering most of his steals have been forced not by his own efforts, but by the efforts of others.
He will get better, but his positioning is often poor and he does not want to play defense. He has not embraced it. When/if he does, he will be very good.
In fact, with his physical skills, he should be a great defender. But until he makes a commitment to it, he will always be average at it.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:09 PM EST up reply actions
Two points,
1- If Wall has to get more fouls to defend better, then he will sit more and UK will struggle without him.
2- Calipari has shown that he wants certain players to fill certain roles. He has some pretty good defensive stoppers coming off the bench. At this point in time, Wall’s role is stay out there, don’t get hurt and don’t get two quick fouls and sit on the bench for a half. He will get better at the defense but he will not become a defensive specialist.
reminded me of another point...
wall, cousins and pp all had 2 fouls in first half of LBS game (would know it was the only game of the season i will see the team in person) and sat for a significant period of time – and we saw the result.
Point is Wall may need to get another foul a game, but not much more – we need him too much at the end – OR bledsoe needs to continue to improve. as the season wears on we will need cousins to still be there- OR we need orton to improve. now that PP hits the 10 to 15 (and 20’ for that matter) jump shot, he will be irreplacable as season wears on…
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 11:50 PM EST up reply actions
Obviously ...
… the goal of aggressive defense is not to get fouls. Good defenders can be very aggressive and not get fouls, but you have to be aggressive first to be a good defender.
At this point in the season, we should expect a few more fouls out of Wall as a consequence of aggressive defense. As he gets better at defense, you would expect to see him get less.
Fouling is not the objective, but in order to be a good defender, you have to be aggressive and physical. Wall, so far, has consistently been neither, defensively.
And lest you or anyone else think I am picking on Wall, Darnell Dodson is by far the worst defender on this team, and that’s why he sees so few minutes. He has zero commitment to defense on a consistent basis, and takes a ton of play off defensively, forcing his teammates to pick up the slack.
Dodson has all the tools that Harris lacks to be a great player, yet Harris is out there more because Dodson is so uncommitted to defense.
Wall is coasting defensively right now. He can be a great defensive player with only a little more effort and commitment to it. His physical skills are so superior that it wouldn’t take much to turn Wall into the best defensive player on the team. But he has to commit to it. Hopefully, he will.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
In my opinion ...
… at this point in the season, we should see a few more fouls if the players are being aggressive on defense. That should subside as they learn to play defense properly.
I wouldn’t want him averaging over 3, like DeMarcus Cousins is. But our perimeter defense is not aggressive enough, and John Wall is a major reason why. That’s UK’s opponents are shooting 36% from three against us.
As far as point 2 is concerned, I can’t agree nor disagree. He does have some better defenders coming off the bench, but I think that is more a consequence of them trying to get more playing time than the fact that he has established that as a role.
But I can’t be sure about that. Perhaps you are right, but if so, it would be the first time he did that for his teams. His Memphis teams were much more aggressive defensively. For example, his 2008 team allowed teams only 30% from 3, 2007 only 31%, 2006 30%, and so on.
So if you are right about that, it appears to be something new.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
Not saying
that it is necessarily what Coach Cal wants, just the reality of where the team is now. Remember, the DDMO is his offense but he has adjusted to fit the team he has and is slowly working it in as they learn and progress. I think the same thing may be happening with Wall. His upside far outweighs his downside right now and Calipari isn’t going to throw him totally offstride while they are winning.
and Cal is different from most coaches...
he puts in the offense first and the defense second.
we are seeing incremental improvement in defense – am hoping to see significant improvement on jan 2….
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 29, 2009 10:19 AM EST up reply actions
disagree with you tru on bledsoe...
I believe Bledsoe has progressed faster on defense than Cousins…and while we are on the subject of Bledsoe, he reminds me of a cross between Delk and Azibuke – athletic with an outside shot. i know he is a few inches shorter but i really like his play (was at the LBS and he looked tired/hurt/out of sorts. missing 3 of 4 FTs was out of character (when he shot technical and shooting foul back to back). even cal noticed and did not start him in the 2H – hope the time off helped him get back on track…
The key to judging a good defender (imo) is by watching to see if their knees are bent when the player they are guarding does NOT have the ball. in this regard, all the freshmen have made some progress…
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 10:31 PM EST reply actions
Bledsoe ...
… has done very well, and I think you can make an argument that he has progressed faster than Cousins. I don’t quite agree, but I think it is a close call.
I like what Cousins is doing because the worst tendency for post defenders is to grab instead of move their feet. Cousins was grabbing early in the year, but now most of his fouls are very close calls, and he moves his feet extremely well for a freshman. That is very, very rare in freshman big men, especially ones who are known as offensive players.
The keys to good defense are:
1. Knowing where the ball is;
2. Knowing where your man is, and keeping proper position in relationship to him;
3. Knowing the tendencies and preferences of the man you are guarding;
4. Moving your feet and not using your arms and hands to compensate for not doing so;
5. Trusting your teammates to communicate with you, and making sure you communicate with them.
Bledsoe and Cousins both seem to get four of the five. I think #5 is a problem for the entire team, as they don’t call out screens well and don’t always seem to know whether to switch or fight through the screen. That’s just something that will sort itself out with coaching and experience. Good players really “get” offense, because it’s what they want to do. Great players “get” defense as well, and learn to take pride in it.
And yes, keeping yourself in a proper defensive stance (which includes keeping your knees flexed) is very important as well. :-)
Defense starts with the scouting report, and it’s important for each player to know the tendencies of every man on the opposing team, if possible. This is typically difficult for freshmen, and it takes a while for them to get a grip on it.
But defense ends with pride. A man who is proud of good defense and ashamed of bad defense will eventually become a good defender.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 10:48 PM EST up reply actions
which puts us in an interesting place...
clearly Ramon gets #5 – he is like a defensive QB
also, i have been impressed by liggins progress….i think he needs work on #2 and #5 but getting there….
only one rule in my house - uk has to be your favorite college bball team
by memphis wildcat on Dec 28, 2009 10:54 PM EST up reply actions
Very good points, both of them.
Liggins is playing like a sophomore, which is to say that he has the fundamentals, and knows that he has to get the scouting report down.
You are right that he still needs work on 2 and 5. But I love the energy he brings, and the commitment to defend. That makes up for a lot.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
by Glenn Logan on Dec 28, 2009 11:01 PM EST up reply actions
I can't
remember which game it was now, but Cousins grabbed at a player dribbling past him and Calipari yanked him immediately and the TV camera caught Cal dancing up the sideline laterally, demonstrating to Cousins to use his feet. Seems like he has improved a lot since that. He is so emotional but really seems to listen and learn quickly. His recent free throw shooting is a case in point. Now if we can just get him to laugh at opposing players who shove him instead of shoving back!
Exactly.
Cousins has improved tremendously in his commitment to defense. In fact, that’s what has impressed me most about him — he started out grabbing, and now he moves his feet and takes charges.
Cousins was the last guy I would have thought would get committed to defense among the freshmen. Actually, I think so far he is second, after Bledsoe. That’s a pleasant surprise, one I never would have predicted.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
I see all of this talk about who is a good defender, and who is maturing,
and who is going to return and who is not, and who is making good decisions and who isnt, and it does my heart good to know that we as a team have still got a ways to go and yet we are by any and all defining characteristics the #3 team in the nation.
If last year’s team had this many “holes” in their game we would be 7-6 and scratching our heads about why BCG was still here.
Folks we are indeed a work in progress, but Joe B. Hall was dead on right about this team the other night in Rupp. They make huge strides every time they hit the floor in some area of their game. The results do not always show up in stat lines, or blow-outs of other teams, but every game at least one facet of their overall performance improves, usually drastically.
But that one intangible factor in all of this that Cal has finally bought into himself, that no one yet seems to be willing to ride to the finish on is their will to win. This team has an indomitable will to win no matter what the situation or team is. Do they play down to their competition?, sure. Freshmen have a habit of doing that, and predominantly young teams are susceptible(spelling???) to it more than others. But that will to win has been missing in so many of UK’s teams the last few years.
Some people mistakenly believe that is shown in what is called “killer instinct”, or the ability to “go for the jugular”, or to put away a team that is of lesser talent. This is simply not the case. That will to win gives you the ice water in your veins when you are down 2 and have less than 8 seconds to cover the floor and make a 3 to win.
We are going to get soooooooo much better in the next few weeks folks. We will develop the skills to go along with the will to win that are necessary to beat the teams we face which are our equals(which aren’t many), or the teams which get hot and try to sneak past you. But in the mean time, we continue to win. We continue to make progress and we win. That will be the deciding factor come March. When Marquette shows up in the second or third round of the tournament with some hot shot player that wants to make his mark, he will not be able to impose his will with this team and send us home holding our dignity in our hands. Trust in Cal…..he will shine and polish, and scream and cajole these guys into great defenders, great shooters, and great players, and more than any of that, into a great team.
Remember, we're having fun now!!!
I have watched some Kansas
games this year and they are a veteran team playing down to their competition. It is not just a freshman thing but a motivational situation. Hard to get up for lesser competition when there are bigger fish to be fried, bigger goals to attain and a long season ahead.
Don't know about that wineman...
Their avg margin of victory is close to 30, unless my KY math has gone south on me! They’ve really blown some folks out; 98-31 vs Alcorn State, 94-44 against Central Arkansas, etc. Granted, they haven’t played anybody and won’t until they go to Tenn the 10th of Jan. Then they’ve got an away game at Texas and then home/away with K-State. That’s their big games this year! Wouldn’t surprise me at all if they run the regular season table…
I completely agree with “motivational situation”, but to say that KU is “playing down to their competition” is a bit of a stretch for me.
If your wings don't sweep....
K-St Will Get 1 W Over KU
Kansas State is much improved.
by FortyYearCatFan on Dec 29, 2009 10:43 AM EST up reply actions
K-St Is Very Good (Especially G's)
A couple of friends are on the staff there.
by FortyYearCatFan on Dec 30, 2009 12:57 PM EST up reply actions
KU Vs Temple In Philadelphia
- Owls will present a significant challenge — more so than Cards at Cats.
"Learn(ing) without thinking begets ignorance. Think(ing) without learning is dangerous."
-Confucius
I agree that Temple will pose a challenge
The A-10 has been solid this year.
Of course its difficult, its a shortcut... if it was easy it'd just be "the way."
Well ...
… the Owls will definitely test the mettle of the Jayhawks.
I think the Cardinals will test the ‘Cats, too. Don’t forget last year.
A Sea of Blue -- Kentucky Sports for the Discerning Fan
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